TPG Capital Backs RCN’s acquisition of Wave Broadband for USD 2.365bn

Published31st, May 2017

TPG Capital, the global private equity platform of alternative asset firm TPG, is backing RCN Telecom Services, LLC (RCN), a nationwide broadband service provider controlled by TPG, to combine with Wave Broadband (Wave) for USD 2.365 billion, the company said. Currently owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners, Wave management, and GI Partners, Wave is a regional broadband fiber company offering a full suite of high-speed data, video, and voice services to residential and business customers. RCN and Wave will combine to create the nation?s sixth largest cable operator, with a diversified presence across seven of the top ten cities in the US The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2017, and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.

Wave is a regional incumbent cable and broadband services provider reaching 673,000 homes and more than 1,800 unique commercial clients in Washington, Oregon, and California. The company has nearly 8,000 miles of owned fiber supporting its market-leading enterprise fiber business. Wave was founded in 2002 by Steve Weed, who will join RCN as a Director upon the close of the transaction.

Wave will continue to operate as a branded entity, headquartered in Kirkland, Washington. In August 2016, TPG entered into definitive agreements to acquire RCN as well as Grande Communications Networks LLC (Grande) through separate transactions. The combination created a regional market leader in next-generation, high-speed data services for residential and business customers with a presence spanning the East Coast, Chicago, and Texas.

The combination with Wave expands RCN?s footprint to the West Coast. TPG?s investments in Wave and RCN reflect its strategy of partnering with innovative companies that are at the forefront of evolving industries. For more than a decade, the firm has been focused on the changing landscape of content creation, distribution, and consumption.

RCN Telecom Services provides industry-leading high-speed Internet, all-digital TV and phone services for residential, small/medium and Enterprise business customers. Grande Communications is a Texas-based broadband communications company that offers a full suite of Internet, TV and phone services for residential and business customers through its state-of-the-art, high-capacity, hybrid fiber-optic network. Wave is a provider of fiber and broadband services on the West Coast.